Spotify inks bundling deal with Orange Switzerland

January 22nd, 2013

Streaming music service Spotify has signed a partnership with mobile operator Orange Switzerland to bundle its Premium subscription service in with smartphone tariffs.

Orange is relaunching a set of tariffs called Orange Young, aimed at under-27s. The three tariffs all include unlimited voice calls and texts, as well as between 1GB and 10GB of monthly data, but also 12 months of Spotify Premium access.

What’s more, Spotify streams won’t be counted against those monthly data limits. Orange will also be promoting Spotify Premium to its other Orange Me tariff customers, again with the zero-data incentive.

The deal may raise eyebrows, given the tight relationship between Spotify’s rival Deezer and Orange in other countries. However, Orange Switzerland was sold in 2011 by France Telecom, meaning it’s not part of the operator group any more. In other words, this isn’t Orange ditching Deezer for Spotify.

The partnership is more significant as a pointer – along with Deezer’s existing deals – towards the kind of bundling tariff that could push streaming music further into the mainstream, especially for younger people.

The cheapest Orange Young Star package costs 29 Swiss Francs a month including a handset – around $31 – including that year of Spotify Premium access.